Delegation
by pisces317
Summary: Carson is taut how to delegate by his friends. Written for the Whump Challenge on GW. Small Shep Whump. Carson Whump.
1. Part I

Sheppard looked down at his wound. He had lost a lot of blood and was starting to feel the effects. Pressing a bandage harder to stem the blood flow and leaning his head back, he took a deep breath. This wasn't over. He still had a long night ahead of him.

Darkness threatened to swallow him whole and despite his best efforts, John wanted to let it.

"Sheppard!" Ronon's gruff voice called from what felt like the world's longest tunnel.

"Wha-?" John asked blearily. God he just wanted to sleep!

"Come on buddy, can't go to sleep on me now," Ronon answered deeply.

John heard the Satedan moving around the damaged jumper, flinging machinery and supplies around like they were pillows you'd throw on a bed.

The part of his brain that realized he needed to stay awake told him that his friend was looking for a bandage to stem the blood flow from the wound in his calf but the rest that just wanted to crash into oblivion didn't even care.

Pain, sharp, piercing, hot, deep, throbbing pain echoed through his leg radiating from his toes to his hip and despite his training John found he couldn't stifle the groan that had escaped through barely parted lips.

"Sorry," Ronon said as he pressed a makeshift bandage deeper into the open, deep wound. There was no twinkle in his eyes as he apologized unlike many other times. This time he really was sorry that he had to cause his friend and commanding officer so much pain that he can't hold it in.

John Sheppard was a strong man, Ronon knew from experience, and it took A LOT of pain, more than any one man's normal tolerance, to make him cry out in pain. Case in point – his leg.

They had been flying through the gate to an uncharted off-world planet only to be greeted on the other side by an angry thunderstorm. Lightning had struck VERY close to the jumper, causing the power in the machine to go out like a shorted circuit.

John had done the best he could but they had still crashed. Ronon for his part was unharmed. Sure he'd have many bruises and wouldn't be able to spar for a week thanks to a couple cracked ribs but it was nothing.

Teyla had sprained her wrist but was otherwise alright as well.

Rodney had broken his arm and endured a couple of broken ribs. Both of which he claimed were much worse than they were.

John had directed Teyla to take Rodney to the gate and get him to Atlantis then send a rescue team for he and Ronon. When asked if he had been injured, Sheppard had, of course, downplayed his injuries saying that despite needing an ice pack and a couple glazed doughnuts he was fine. So reluctantly, Teyla escorted a very loudly complaining Rodney to the gate.

Only after they had gone and Ronon suggested that they move to a safer spot did Sheppard tell him how badly he was hurting.

A branch had penetrated through the tough exterior and right into John's calf, breaking the bone as it went. It had taken a lot of force along with a lot of pain and screaming, on Sheppard's side, to get the Colonel free and to the back of the damaged jumper.

He'd lost a lot of blood and had been drifting on the edge of shock for the past three hours. Ronon had done his best to stem the blood flow but the leg still bled freely.

Dawn broke on the crashed machine, bringing hope and the sound of another jumper with it.

Ronon placed a hand on the injured and barely conscious man's shoulder, "Hang in there Sheppard. Help is almost here."


	2. Part II

**I wanted to thank all of you for your reviews! I hadn't actually planned on writing more but your requests spurred me on to do so. Now I fear there will be another part or two to follow this one. **

**I hope you all enjoy it! Please review and let me know. **

* * *

><p><strong>Part II<strong>

Dr. Carson Beckett stood in the infirmary waiting impatiently for his patient and friend Lt. Colonel John Sheppard to be brought in. He'd treated Teyla and Rodney for relatively minor injuries despite Rodney's constant complaining that he was dying or that his arm should be cut off.

They'd both told him the story of the jumper crashing into a very dense forest and how they'd hiked to back to the Stargate to get help, leaving Colonel Sheppard and Ronon behind.

What they hadn't mentioned was that Colonel Sheppard had been injured. He was about to ask them why when Major Lorne had told him, via Atlantis, that they hadn't known and that Colonel Sheppard didn't want them to know right now.

Carson shook his head at the seemingly ridiculous request. He knew that the Colonel was a proud man, though not arrogantly proud, and liked to keep certain things hidden from everybody but it wasn't like Teyla and Rodney were just anybody – they were members of his team and his family. And they would also find out once the Colonel arrived.

He felt a warm tendrils of static reach out and caress him and immediately knew it was Atlantis reaching out to him. Instantly, the doctor opened his mind, _Yes love, what is it?_

_**It's John, **_Atlantis informed.

A tremor ran through the static and Carson knew something was wrong. _What's wrong?_

_**He's in so much pain. I can feel it. **_

_Aye, don't worry. I'll get him taken care of. Have they arrived? _

_**Yes, they are on their way to you now. **_

Just as these words finished in his mind, Carson heard the wheels of the gurney flying down the hall towards the infirmary. Within seconds John's gurney came through the entrance and immediately Carson was in "doctor mode" – doing his best to separate the patient from friend.

He'd just gotten John under the ancient scanner, searching for broken bones, torn muscles, separated ligaments, when Teyla and Rodney came through the door.

Carson had a good staff and would stand up to anyone, including Ronon, when it came to the person violating any orders of his. They also knew how to handle an annoyed, and often times paranoid, Rodney. Both things of which were happening right now.

Having had enough nonsense and noise, Carson handed over the process of scanning to Dr. Keller and went over to shut them all up. "What's the problem here?" he announced loudly, his accent getting thicker as his temper rose.

"Where's Sheppard?" Ronon asked immediately in his dangerously low voice. At the same time Rodney blurted out, "Your crack staff won't let us back to see Sheppard."

Carson let out a sigh of long suffering. He loved this group, they were practically family to him, but sometimes he wanted to strangle them all, with the exception of Teyla of course, or sedate them for a week so that he could do normal things like take a vacation, go out on a date, or hell even sleep.

He brought a hand up to his forehead and rubbed, doing his best to ease the slowly building migraine behind his temples. "Rodney," he said while doing his best to keep the annoyance out of his voice, "they are only doing as they were instructed, by me."

"Carson," Teyla interposed quietly, effectively interrupting Rodney's oncoming rant, "how is John doing?"

"Right now, I don't know," Carson answered, addressing them all, "we have just gotten him under the scanner. Once he finishes there and I've seen the scan images, I'll know more. For now he's resting comfortably."

"What do you mean 'he's resting comfortably'?" Rodney ranted. "He was fine when we left him." When he looked at his other two team members, both aliens gave him sad looks and averted their gazes quickly.

Carson saw that his annoying friend was quickly working himself into a spluttered rage so he quickly brought the attention back towards himself. "No he wasn't Rodney. From what I've gathered a branch from the forest had penetrated the jumper and had gone through the Colonel's lower leg."

Rodney immediately paled at the thought. He wasn't good with things like blood or pain and the thought of his friend in that kind of pain made his stomach tie in knots. He thought that Sheppard had looked pale when they'd landed but he thought it was merely the lack of light.

"Carson," Dr. Jennifer Keller called from where the images of the scan were appearing, "you should see this."

Carson offered his friends an apologetic nod before turning on his heel and walking over to where Jennifer stood. His brow wrinkled with sympathy for his friend when his eyes ran over the images and his brain translated what they were seeing.

"Alright, Jennifer prep the OR and get Dr. Jenkins in here to help," he instructed not wanting to waste any more time, "We'll also need Rosa in here to administer the anesthetic,"

"Anesthetic, you mean he needs surgery?" Rodney asked using the annoyance in his tone to hide the concern.

"Aye Rodney he does. Now I'm gonna have to ask all of you to leave the infirmary until you are notified that you can return," Carson answered, ushering the three of them gently out the door.

"But-"

"No argument," Carson cut off with finality in his voice, "We need peace and quiet while we work and we won't have that with you in the room." His eyes and tone softened when he saw offense flitter briefly over Rodney's face. "Go get something to eat, the lot of you. It will take us at least a couple of hours to repair the Colonel's leg and you don't need to be here for that."

"Come on Rodney, let us leave Doctor Beckett alone so he can help John," Teyla suggested soothingly, using an arm to effectively herd Rodney out of the infirmary.

"Fine but they better have pudding today," Rodney grumbled as he led the way to the cafeteria.

Teyla resisted the urge not to roll her eyes but Ronon and Carson couldn't resist.

When the group had left, Carson went and joined his team in the OR to begin fixing the damage done to John's leg. Sighing heavily in an effort to release some tension, he looked down at the man on the table and said, "Alright lad, let's get you fixed up."

* * *

><p>"<em>Dr. Weir, come in please." <em>Carson's voice politely requested over the radio.

Elizabeth finished reading the last line of a particularly long email then brought her hand up to her ear piece, "Go ahead Carson," she invited easily knowing it was about John.

"_I was wondering if you could find Colonel Sheppard's team and inform them that I am finished with the surgery and they will be allowed to visit the Colonel in thirty minutes?" _

She wanted to ask why he didn't just tell them but she heard the exhaustion in his voice and hoped that if she did this it would allow him time to go get some rest. "Sure Carson, how's he doing?"

Carson let out a heavy sigh, _"I'll be up there within the hour to fill you in." _

"Alright," Elizabeth granted though she knew that he wasn't really asking. She frowned slightly when she heard the tightness in his voice, "Are you alright?"

"_Aye, I'm fine. I just want to grab something to eat while I have the time." _Carson said though something in his voice told her that he was not in fact fine.

"Sounds good, I'll inform the rest of John's team."

"_Thank ye lass. I'll see you in thirty." _And with that Carson clicked off the link.

Elizabeth shook her head. She wondered what was going on with her most skilled and most respected doctor but realizing that she would never weasel it out of him, she got out of her chair and walked into the control room.

"Chuck, could you locate Teyla, Ronon and Rodney for me please?" She asked the technician.

Chuck's eyes twinkled, telling her that he'd been listening and told her without needing to look, "They are in the mess hall."

"Thanks," she said offering a gentle pat on the shoulder before she walked down the stairs towards the mess hall.

She entered and found the three immediately. They sat in a corner with five empty trays on the table. They all looked up at her in expectation but she merely offered a quizzical eyebrow raise as she eyed the trays.

"What?" Rodney responded immediately, "I was hungry."

"They don't all belong to Rodney," Teyla defended throwing an even glance in Ronon's direction.

Ronon, not feeling the need to defend his actions, merely shrugged then leaned back in his chair, stretching his long, muscular legs out in front of him. While his body language was relaxed, Elizabeth could see that he could easily have someone on the floor with their arm behind their back and their head in an arm lock in a second's notice.

"Carson radioed and said that you all could visit John in thirty minutes," she informed, folding her arms in front of her.

"How is John?" Teyla asked, rising already.

"I don't know," she admitted honestly, "Carson said that he'd fill me in within the hour."

"That is very unusual for Doctor Beckett is it not?" Teyla asked. Her tone relayed her curiosity but her brown eyes showed the concern she felt.

"He said that he just wanted to grab something to eat," Elizabeth dismissed.

All three friends looked at each other, giving a very significant look that told Elizabeth that the Scottish doctor had yet to make an appearance but they said nothing directly to her.

"We should go," Teyla said trying to excuse the group from their boss' presence politely.

Elizabeth smiled and nodded, "I think I'll grab some of that chocolate-banana pudding before I head back to my office. Tell John that I say hello."

Teyla nodded then walked out with Ronon and Rodney flanking her on each side.

They were an odd group together but she wouldn't challenge it for the world because they worked well and were nothing less than a family and families stayed together.

* * *

><p>A gentle knock sounded on the door to the bathroom in the infirmary, "Carson, are you alright? You've been in there for twenty minutes."<p>

Carson let out a quiet groan. He hadn't realized that he'd been in here that long nor had he meant to stay that long. Shortly after he'd notified Elizabeth, bile had begun to rise in his throat and he knew that if he didn't get to a bathroom quickly, he'd be sick all over the OR.

"I'll be out in a minute," he assured Jennifer kindly.

Pushing himself off the floor, Carson stumbled out the door. Jennifer caught him easily before he landed face first on the floor. "Are you sure you're alright? You look pale."

"Aye, I'm alright. Thanks Jennifer. I should go and update Dr. Weir." Normally Carson wasn't one to ignore the symptoms of a migraine but he hoped that he could continue to ignore it long enough to report to Elizabeth. Then he could go get some rest in his room and not come out for 24 hours.

Jennifer eyed him warily but stepped out of the way and released the soft hold she had on his arm. She felt her worry increase when slight tremors began running through her boss' arm but she said nothing. If he said that he was fine (at least enough to report to his boss) then he was fine.

Carson reached the doorway to Elizabeth's office, panting slightly with the exertion it had taken. He stole a moment to gather his breath before entering, not wanting her to think there was anything wrong with him.

Elizabeth looked up from her computer, giving a warm smile when she saw him. "Carson, come on in," she greeted lounging slightly in her chair. She frowned a little when she noticed the light layer of sweat that had formed at his brow. Since Atlantis kept the city at a comfortable 72 degrees, she knew he shouldn't be hot and it wasn't enough of a workout to get from the infirmary to her door for him to be sweating from exercise.

Then she noticed how pale her friend looked and couldn't stop the frown from deepening. While the doctor was not a tan man, he usually couldn't out-whiten a ghost either. If there was to be a contest for "The Whitest Person" between Carson, a ghost and a vampire – Carson would win, hands down.

"Are you alright?" She asked noticing how he squinted in the bright room.

"Yeah," he answered while trying to hide a wince. While he recognized that the room was quite dark compared to the rest of Atlantis, the light still hurt considerably, "just a wee bit of a headache."

Elizabeth nodded but the feeling that there was more to it than a headache kept gnawing at her stomach like a hungry lion picking at its food. She nodded for him to continue guessing that he wanted to be out of there as soon as possible.

Before he opened his mouth, the lights in Elizabeth's room dimmed dramatically drawing a small gasp of surprise from the owner. "What happened, did we lose power?"

Carson offered an easy smile, "No, I'm sorry." In the next instant the lights were raised back to their normal brightness. "Colonel Sheppard is resting comfortably and doing well," he began before being cut off by Elizabeth holding up a hand.

"Hold on, what was that?" She asked curiously.

"I apologize," Carson said, "Atlantis sensed my headache and turned off the lights. It won't happen again."

While Elizabeth wasn't new to the concept of Atlantis responding to a person's moods, pain, etc, she wasn't aware of it happening for anyone except John. Jealousy spread through her breast providing a warmth that the sun couldn't touch. God how she would like to know what that was like!

"I wasn't aware the she did that for you," she said, her tone indicating a question while the words themselves formed a statement.

"Aye," Carson admitted, bringing a hand to his head and massaging for a few seconds before refocusing his attention back on his boss, "lately she has begun to reach out for me and we have formed a closer relationship."

Deciding that it was best to let the subject go for now and get her friend to a bed, Elizabeth brought the subject back to the original topic. "You said that John was resting comfortably and is doing well but what happened?"

"The Colonel and his team were on their way to M3R-907 to investigate the rumor of a ZPM when they encountered a very fierce thunderstorm," he began trying to put as much detail in while keeping it simple as possible, "It seems that a bold of lightning crossed very near the jumper causing John to crash. A tree branch went through the jumper right at the pilot's seat, forcing its way through the Colonel's leg."

Elizabeth gasped. She'd heard most of the details from Rodney and had read the mission report but she hadn't known the extent of the damage that had been done.

"The branch broke the Colonel's tibia and fibula in two different places as well as causing a great deal of muscle, ligament and tissue damage. We surgically repaired the damage."

"Prognosis?" Elizabeth asked knowing that she could get the details out of Dr. Keller.

Carson's eyes fell to the floor, "I do not know. I'm hopeful that he'll regain full use of his leg but it's really up to the Colonel's physically chemistry. He's always been a quick healer so there's a pretty good chance that he'll be fine after a wee bit of physical therapy."

"Alright, thanks Carson. Why don't you go get some rest, you look like you need it."

"Thanks Elizabeth, I think I shall."

Just as he stood, the painful throbbing in his head cranked up from hammers to nuclear explosions. The room began to spin and his vision began to cloud as his blood pressure dropped swiftly and dangerously low.

Elizabeth gasped as she watched her friend drop to the floor with a heavy thud. Having seen the doctor fall, Chuck ran in to check on him allowing Elizabeth to tell him to call for a medical team to her office while she checked on Carson.

Thankfully his had missed the sharp edge of a bookcase when he'd fallen but his entire body had taken the brunt of the impact. One of her office chairs lay under his left side and he'd managed to take out a very ugly statue the IOA had given her.

As she checked for any immediate signs for broken bones, Elizabeth noticed that his left wrist was starting to swell and a red-blue bruise was beginning to encompass the entire joint.

"What happened?" Jennifer asked, gently pushing Elizabeth out of the way.

"He stood up, grabbed his head and then fell," Elizabeth responded, stunned and worried.

Jennifer nodded her head in acknowledgement as she began examining her fallen friend. His pupils were responsive but his breathing was slightly labored and his heart rate was abnormally high.

Tapping her radio, Jennifer barked professionally into the phone, "Marie I need a medical team and a gurney to Dr. Weir's office now."

"Right away," Marie's equally professional voice answered and before Jennifer had time to realize that they'd ended their brief communication the young woman had shown up with three nurses and a variety of medical supplies.

Distantly Jennifer heard the small gasp that had escaped the woman's mouth but her main focus was on the man before her.

Carson's eyelids fluttered open and he immediately winced at the lights. Throbbing pain coursed through his head in time with his very fast heart beat and he groaned when it kept rising higher and higher.

He felt frantic tendrils of static reach out to him and touch his mind. It made him wince but he didn't withdraw from the touch.

_**Are you alright? **_Atlantis asked with concern in the question. _**Shall I turn out the lights? **_

Before he had time to answer, Carson heard another voice answer. _No, Doctor Keller needs to be able to see in order to help. _

Carson tried to turn his head but that only made the pain worse.

"Easy Carson," Jennifer soothed, using her hands to hold his head still. "We're going to get you something for the headache here in a minute."

Carson knew the protocol and knew that they wouldn't be able to do too much until after Jennifer had examined and cleared him. He tried to reach for patience but he just ended up with pain.

_Sorry doc, I didn't mean to scare you. _The voice intruded gently again. _It's Major Lorne, Atlantis opened all communication with her but since Colonel Sheppard is unable to be here, he sent me. _

Carson allowed his crystal blue eyes to focus on the Major and offer a nod with them before he closed his eyes. He felt something akin to exhaustion start pulling on him since he'd regained consciousness and he finally allowed it to drag him down into sweet darkness.


	3. Part III

**Part III**

John woke groggy and in pain. Thankfully the pain wasn't as bad as before but it was still pretty darn bad. He felt a warm thrumming in the back of his mind and sighed – Atlantis!

_**Welcome home John. **_She greeted warmly, wrapping him up in a welcoming embrace. Comforting heat spread through his body, seemingly diminishing the pain in his leg. _**I missed you. **_

_I missed you too ol' girl. _John responded with a contented sigh. _How were things while I was away? _

_**Boring – it was nice. **_

John mentally laughed at the statement understanding fully just how she felt. His mood changed when he sensed a hesitance in her. _What is it? _

_**There's something wrong with Doctor Beckett.**_

_What's wrong? _John asked worried. If it worried Atlantis, it worried him. He'd been helping Carson and Lorne to connect with Atlantis on a more personal level. It had been going great and soon the two other men had formed a close relationship with the city, enabling them to connect with her effortlessly and to connect with each other.

Before Atlantis had time to answer, John saw Dr. Keller run out of the door, spare papers and files flying in the wind as she passed.

_Lorne! _John called silently thanking Atlantis for leaving the connection open for him.

_Yes sir? _

_What's going on? _

_I don't know what you mean sir. _

_Atlantis says there's something wrong with Beckett. _John waited impatiently to hear back from Lorne.

"John?" Teyla's voice beckoned softly.

Realizing he'd been caught, John fought to open his heavy eyes. Atlantis automatically dimmed the lights around his bed for which he was grateful for. He rolled his head to his right, smiling when he saw the Athosian sitting beside his bed. "Hey," he greeted gruffly.

Teyla brought a cup of water with a straw to his lips and he drank deeply, relishing in the feel of the water as it hydrated his throat.

"How are you feeling?" She asked, eyes roaming over his body to look for signs of pain.

"I'm okay," he answered honestly. He felt tired but he wasn't hurting.

_Colonel, _Lorne called to him.

John put up a hand for Teyla to wait a minute before he mentally responded, _Yes Major_

_It appears that Doctor Beckett has, _there was a pause as Lorne searched for the correct word. There was a hint of a smile in his voice as he continued, _fainted. _

John smiled remembering Rodney's strong dislike for the word.

_However, _Lorne continued with no trace of smile in his tone, _unlike with Doctor McKay, Doctor Beckett is in a lot pain. _

John nodded then, realizing that Lorne couldn't see that he responded, _Thanks Lorne._

He turned his attention back to Teyla who was sitting by his side with a confused expression on her face. "Sorry," he apologized, "Lorne and I were talking."

Teyla nodded her understanding knowing that John had the ability to mentally connect with Atlantis and those who have a strong enough gene. "Is everything alright?"

Before he could answer, Dr. Keller came flying through the doors with Carson lying on a gurney for which John was really grateful. He didn't want to have to explain what was going on with Carson.

Keller immediately got Carson under the scanner, watching the images that popped up and reading the printouts of the results.

"Marie," she beckoned, "will you please get Doctor Beckett settled in a bed? He's going to be staying with us for a few hours at the least."

Marie allowed her eyes to travel over the still form of her boss, a sad expression in them, before she answered, "Yes doctor."

Teyla turned her attention back to John, "What is going on?" she asked getting a very strong idea that he knows something.

"I don't know," he said tiredly. His energy was waning fast and his head and leg were beginning to ache.

Teyla gave him a disbelieving look but she said nothing. She could see that he was getting tired and knew that she wouldn't get anything out of him in this state. "Maybe you should get some rest," she suggested questioningly.

"No, I want to know what's going on with Beckett first." John refused stubbornly.

Marie wheeled Carson to the spot next to John recognizing that the Colonel was worried about the doctor and knowing that he would more than likely hurt himself if he wasn't allowed to hear what was being said and done.

She began getting Carson's bed set up, raising the head and attaching a pulse ox monitor and heart monitor. The heart monitor became fast immediately but there wasn't anything she could do about that until they knew what was going on.

Jennifer came over with a syringe full of a low dose of percocet in it. The scans showed that other than a badly bruised left wrist and an over stressed heart, he was fine. She remembered that he'd said he had a headache earlier when he'd left and she soon put two and two together figuring out that he actually had a bad migraine.

She injected the small dose of pain medication then grabbed a compression bandage and began to wrap his wrist.

"Doc?" Colonel Sheppard's voice called to her from the next bed. Quickly she placed the injured wrist on a small pillow then put an ice pack on top before she turned her attention to her next patient.

"Colonel," she greeted with a smile, "how are you feeling?"

"What's wrong with Beckett?" John asked completely ignoring her question.

Jennifer smiled at him, folding her hands in front of her, "He's managed to overwork himself into complete exhaustion. He's been going for days and if I had a guess I would say he's hardly eaten in that time and sleep has been non-existent. It resulted in migraine which only continued to get worse the longer it went ignored and so when he got ready to leave Dr. Weir's office, his body had had enough."

"What is wrong with his wrist?" Teyla asked after looking at the bandaged joint.

"He smacked it pretty good on Dr. Weir's desk, deeply bruising the muscle and the bone. It'll be painful for a little while but as long as he doesn't use it, he'll be fine." The younger doctor informed. Marie called for her so she excused herself with a smile and left.

Weariness weighed on John like a wet blanket, dragging him down slowly but surely. He didn't even notice when his eyelids closed and didn't open.

Teyla watched with comfort as John began to fall back asleep. She could see that he was tired but his concern for his friend wouldn't allow him to rest. It was a quality that she admired greatly but it was also something that impacted his own health immensely.

Moving her chair so that she could keep watch over both men, Teyla settled in finding that she had no desire to be anywhere else.

* * *

><p>Carson woke thankful to find that his head was no longer threatening to explode. Unfortunately the heart monitor beep in his ear told him that he was in the infirmary which couldn't be a good thing.<p>

Reluctantly he opened his eyes, groaning quietly as the light assaulted his eyes.

"Doctor Beckett?" Teyla's soft voice called, "Are you alright?"

Carson opened his eyes again and looked at her, "Aye, I'm okay." He tried to push himself further up the bed so that he was sitting up straight but fell back against the partially raised bed when his injured wrist wouldn't support his weight and shot pain through his arm.

"Doctor Keller says that you should not try to use your arm for a few days," Teyla informed as she stood up and helped him get comfortable.

"Actually I didn't give a determined amount of time," Jennifer said having noticed that Carson was awake, "but I think a couple of weeks would be more like it." She gave Teyla a friendly smile letting her know that she did okay then turned her attention to her patient. "How are you feeling?"

"Better," Carson said.

"Well your vitals have evened out," Jennifer said looking at the heart monitor, "how's your head?" She shone her penlight into his crystal blue eyes, satisfied when his pupils reacted.

Carson winced as she checked his eyes, "It's a lot better."

"Still have a headache huh?" Jennifer asked.

"I think everyone does after you shine a light in their eyes," John chimed in.

"Colonel," Carson greeted warmly, "how are you feelin lad?"

"I think you should worry about yourself there doc, Keller's got that look like she wants to keep you overnight."

"Hush you," Jennifer said while pointing her finger at John before instructing Carson to lean forward so she could listen to his lungs.

Carson grimaced as pain seared through his side, lighting it on fire. He brought his right hand around his stomach and held on, waiting for the pain to die down.

"Doc, what's wrong?" John asked noticing the grimace.

Gently Jennifer lifted his shirt revealing deep, painful bruising that covered his left side. Carefully as she could, she pressed over each bruised rib checking for breaks. "He's bruised his side pretty good," she informed the impatiently waiting Colonel, "but he'll be fine. I'll go get some ibuprofen."

"How are you feeling John?" Teyla asked beating Carson to it.

"Pretty good," John answered, slightly surprised that it was the truth.

"How's your leg?" Carson asked unable to decided of John was lying or not.

"It's fine," The Colonel answered, lying more than a little. The leg was actually hurting but since it wasn't as bad he expected, he didn't see the point in admitting it.

Carson gave him a look that clearly said he didn't believe a word of it. He however didn't have time to argue with his friend as the pain in his side renewed, searing through his chest and back. He tried to hide it when he saw Jennifer coming towards him with a paper cup of ibuprofen.

"I saw that," she announced handing him the medicine. She grabbed the pitcher of water and poured a cup then handed it to her friend to drink from. "Hiding your pain won't make it likely that you'll get out of here sooner," she lectured.

John gave Carson a triumphant look from his bed. He couldn't count how many times the Scottish doctor had given him the same lecture.

"And don't go thinking you're out of the clear either Colonel," Jennifer said turning on him. "I know you're lying about how much you're hurting."

"I'm not lying," John answered almost tiredly. He realized that their skepticism was normally warranted but he really didn't hurt all that badly. "Yeah I'm not up to running around with Ronon but it doesn't hurt that bad."

A frown creased Jennifer's young face. She moved down to the bandaged limb to examine it, the frown evening out into disbelief as she gently unwrapped the recently operated leg.

With the skilled fingers of a physician she palpitated the surgical site and forced the foot to flex, allowing her to gauge how much damage remained. It didn't surprise any of them that John made no show of pain as she conducted her exam.

"Marie," Jennifer called to the veteran nurse, "would you set up the scanner then help me get the Colonel under it please?"

"Right away doctor," Marie answered, scampering off to do as she was bid.

"Doc?" John asked. His tone indicating lecture but his expression showing worry.

"You're fine," Jennifer assured, "I just want to take new images of your leg to compare to the old ones."

There was a hiss as Carson tried to get out of bed bringing the younger doctor's attention to himself.

"And where do you think you're going?" she asked folding her arms across her chest.

"I want to see the images," Carson said still trying to work his way off the bed.

"I don't think so. You aren't going anywhere for another four hours and you won't be on duty for another week or two after that." She placed her body in front of Carson's struggling form and gently pushed him back into the bed. "Now, stay here while I go look at the scans. If you don't stay in bed, I'll sedate you."

Carson waited until Jennifer was out of sight before he once again tried to get out of bed. Unfortunately, Teyla hadn't left and was there to stop him.

"Did Doctor Keller not say for you to say in bed?" She asked as she stood and walked over to his bed.

"Aye but Colonel Sheppard is still my patient," Carson argued, panting with pain as he sat on the edge of his bed.

Teyla's brows furrowed and her stern eyes softened as she stood there watching her friend try to control the pain that coursed swiftly through his body. "I think you should rest and let Doctor Keller take care of Colonel Sheppard."

Carson looked up at Teyla, ready for a fight but the fight left as soon as he recognized that she wasn't about to let him out of bed nor help him should he manage to get there on his own. Exhaustion hit him like a tidal wave as he sat there debating whether or not he should just listen to Jennifer.

He felt strong hands catch him as he listed to the side. What little energy he'd woken with was quickly leaving his body and it was getting harder to hold himself upright.

A blanket tucked around him and soon the familiar sounds of the infirmary began to slowly fade into the background. Before he fell asleep, Carson heard a soft, soothing voice coo, "Get some rest Carson. John is well taken care of."


	4. Part IV

**Part IV:**

When they wheeled John back to his spot beside Carson, the Scottish doctor was asleep as was Teyla who was sitting next to both bedsides. Jennifer had left to go over the results of the scans leaving a very wide awake and anxious John Sheppard alone.

His green eyes roamed over his sleeping friends, stopping more particularly over Teyla's perfectly defined curves. She always looked so much younger when she was sleeping. The lines of stress and authority were gone from her face leaving a much younger person in its wake.

The scuffle of shoes coming closer drew him out of his fond observing and he looked up to find Keller coming towards him with the results of his scans in her hand and a friendly smile on her face. _That's encouraging at least, _he thought dryly. He was more than a little curious by the sudden desire to have him back under the scanner and the fact that the younger doctor has been completely silent on the matter has been driving him batty.

Jennifer gave him a warming smile, "I think we should wake Carson and Teyla before we begin, don't you?"

"I suppose," John admitted with a shrug.

Teyla awoke gracefully, stretching and straightening herself in her chair with the ease of a cat. Carson on the other hand woke with a small groan and a wince.

"What's going on?" he asked as he stiffly, and if his winces were anything to go by painfully, sat up straighter in his bed.

"That's what I would like to know too but Doc here thought she should wake you guys first," John answered, straightening himself up in his own bed as well.

"I got the results of the scan back," Jennifer informed, stepping back from Carson's bed and standing in between the beds of her two patients. She held the results in between folded hands which were enter-twining her arms together as they crossed in front of her body. She had such an angelic expression on her face that for a moment, and not for the first time, John had the urge to ask for her credentials.

Without offering any other form of explanation, Jennifer walked over to John's bed then began stripping the bandaging which covered his injured leg. Once things were removed she gently lifted his leg and pushed it towards his chest in a swift, stretching motion.

John winced at the motion but it didn't hurt nearly as bad as it should have that both amazed him and freaked him out. He knew the amount of damage that had been done to his leg and he knew he would normally be in agony had she done this a day or so earlier but yet he's not.

"Doc," he asked while doing his best to hide just how unnerved he was.

"Aye Jennifer what's goin on?" Carson asked. His first instinct when his colleague had begun was to jump out of the bed and stop her but when his friend and patient did nothing but wince with the movement he stayed in his bed, frozen in curiosity.

"I honestly don't know how but Colonel Sheppard's leg has been mostly healed."

"What do you mean mostly?" John asked suspiciously, narrowing his eyes in a wince as his injured limb let him know that it hadn't enjoyed the stretching it had been forced to do.

Jennifer smiled warmly then pulled out an instant ice pack, activated it and placed it on top of his leg before replying, "The most severe damage that had been done, the multiple breaks, major muscle, tissue and ligament damage, has been healed to the point where it will only take a few weeks of staying off the leg and another couple months of physical therapy before you're back on active duty."

"Providing your doctor signs off on it," Carson added. He wasn't wholly surprised by how quickly the Colonel had healed. He'd seen the man in his infirmary more times than he could count and the fact that the military commander could, almost always, get right back out there and save the day, usually within an hour or two of getting injured, wasn't new to him.

He smiled fondly as he remembered the argument John had had with Jennifer after the building had collapsed on him. Here John was, losing blood quicker than anyone had liked and he was politely demanding to be allowed to rescue Teyla from Michael.

Jennifer hadn't wanted to let him go on the mission at all but Carson, after finally talking the PA who was trying to examine Ronon into leaving the Satedan to him, had stepped in and helped coax her into it. She'd grudgingly agreed but only after giving him a transfusion and stitches and strict instructions to let Ronon do all the heavy lifting.

After John, Rodney and Ronon had left, Carson had explained to a very annoyed Jennifer Keller about the situation with Lt. Ford. At first Jennifer hadn't made the connection but patiently Carson connected the dots between that situation and this one. Though she was still obviously not happy about the whole thing, Jennifer was more understanding of how the Colonel had been feeling and why he was so adamant about going.

Pain flared bright and hot in his side as he shifted to try to get more comfortable effectively bringing him back to the present as he stifled a groan.

"So does this mean that I can get released to my quarters today?" John asked sounding almost hopefully.

"Tomorrow, yes. I want to keep you here for a little bit longer for observation and to see how you do on your own."

"Aw come on doc," the Colonel challenged almost whining.

"Sorry Colonel, that's the deal," Jennifer denied. "On the bright side you'll have company," she added, turning her attention on to her other patient.

"Jennifer-" Carson began.

"Don't even try," Jennifer said with a gentle laugh and holding up her hand in a silencing motion, "I know that you "feel better" but you know the rules and overnight observation is necessary when the boss faints from exhaustion and a migraine."

"You said I'd be released in four hours," Carson reminded petulantly.

"What and leave me here by myself?" John pouted impishly.

"Don't worry, you still have another week before you can come back to work," she added with a deceivingly sweet smile then walked away.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Carson asked annoyed.

"I think it means," John said trying to hide a smile, "that she's not letting you come back to work for another week."

"I knew that Colonel but it's really not necessary," Carson replied almost snappily.

"Well why don't you get out of bed, walk over there and tell her that?" John suggested knowing that the good doctor couldn't do it.

"Very helpful Colonel."

"Just trying to be nice."

"Gentlemen," Teyla interrupted when she saw that Carson was about to make a retort. "I believe that Doctor Keller wishes the both of you to relax and get better. You cannot do that while you are arguing, can you?"

"Yes!" Both men replied instantly with sly smiles.

The group laughed heartily and the annoyed tension between the two men dissipated instantly. The laughing stopped when Carson's face wrinkled in a grimace and he clutched his side in pain.

"You probably shouldn't laugh so hard for a few more days," Jennifer stated as she handed Carson a paper cup of pain meds and a cup of water.

"What is this? Are ya tryin to sedate me?" Carson asked as he looked at the pills before he took them.

"Not cool doc," John lectured with a shake of his head.

Jennifer winced at the accusation tone in her boss' voice. "Yes I was, I'm sorry. I think that you," she looked from Carson to John, "both of you, need to rest but I know better than to think that you'd actually try it if I told you to."

"So you decided to drug me," Carson accused again, "without my consent?"

"I'm sorry," she apologized again. Before Carson could say more, Marie called for her as an off-world team came through the door for the post-mission check up.

Carson filtered through the medicines, picking out the sedation medication and swallowing the ibuprofen. He clutched his side, hoping to stabilize his side as he stiffly maneuvered his legs off the bed with some grumbling done by his wrist.

"Doc, didn't Keller say that you should be resting?" John asked curious about what his friend was doing.

"Believe it or not Colonel I am a doctor as well, despite Rodney's claims, and know what's good for me and what's not. I have to use the little laddies' room."

"Should you not wait for someone to help you? Is that not what you always tell Colonel Sheppard?" Teyla asked earning a broad grin and a thumbs up from John.

Carson rolled his eyes dramatically and gave a long-suffering sigh. "Unlike Colonel Smarty Pants over there, I am actually fine-"

"-so the rainbow bruising on your side was painted on?" John interrupted.

"-AND can get there on my own."

Gently he eased himself onto the floor, wincing as his bare feet settled on the cold floor. Slowly but sure he made his way to the restroom hunching over slightly to avoid putting too much pressure on his side.

Teyla watched the doctor closely more than ready to jump up should the need arise. She spared a quick glance to her left at John who was watching Carson just as closely though he knew he wouldn't be of much help if such help was needed. Giving his hand a comforting pat, she turned her attention back to the man slowly making his way to the bathroom.

Carson returned to his bed with a sense of triumph though that he felt triumphant about making it to the bathroom was a sad statement on just how little energy he truly had. He released a breath of relief when he got settled into the bed, relishing in the relative softness of the mattress and pillows.

He shifted around for a while, unsuccessfully trying to get a pillow behind his back to take some pressure off his tender side. This normally easy task had suddenly become harder, being complicated by the fact that he couldn't use his left hand at all nor could he arch his back to get a pillow back there the normal way.

Upon seeing her friend's troubles, Teyla stood up, walked over to the bed and helped get a pillow behind his lower back then another one behind his shoulders to help support his head and upper back.

"Thank ye dear," Carson said once Teyla had sat back down. He stole a quick glance over at John whose own eyelids were beginning to droop and felt confident that they both would be asleep before long.

"You don't have to stay, we'll be fine," he assured the Athosian with a winning, if not tired, smile and a soft pat on the hand.

Teyla looked at both of her friends before nodding. "Very well," she said standing up. She walked over to John's bed and leant down to give him a sisterly kiss on the forehead then repeated the process with Carson. "I should get back to Torren. I believe that Major Lorne could use a break from babysitting."

"You could have brought him," John said tiredly.

"I did not want him to wake you. He is not very good at sitting still."

"S'okay," John replied wit a wave of his hand, "I'd like to see him."

"I believe that the next time I see you, you will be released to your quarters," Teyla said with a smile.

"From your mouth to Keller's ears," John said laughingly.

Teyla laughed, having heard the correct phrase "from your mouth to God's ears". "Sleep well John. Good night Carson."

"G'night lassie," Carson bid with a tired wave. He gave John a knowing look, "What's all that then?"

John gave a blank look. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Carson laughed weakly but warmly, drawing Jennifer's attention. She walked over hesitantly, bashfully.

"How are you two doing over here?" she asked in a friendly tone. She knew that Carson was not happy about her trying to sedate him and that she would more than likely get written up but she thought it would be good for him to get a good night's uninterrupted sleep.

"We're good doc," John answered with a friendly enough smile. His trust of her had waned slightly with the whole "sedation against the patient's will" thing but he knew her to be competent physician and since she was under Carson's supervision he'd let the Scot take care of it.

Jennifer nodded, "Good, well I am out of here for the night so I will bid you both good night as well. Get some rest. I will be here bright and early tomorrow morning to check on you and release you both."

"You know, you could just save yourself the time and early morning and release us now," John suggested off handed.

"Nice try Colonel but you will both be here for the night. Sleep well."

"Good night Jennifer," Carson bid evenly before he settled in for the night.

"So, what are you going to do about her?" John asked though he told himself he wouldn't.

"I haven't decided yet," Carson answered honestly. He brought a hand up to massage away at his newly aching temples. The very idea of all the paperwork and official reporting of the situation gave him a headache alone not to mention the fact that it was harder to be impartial because it had happened to him by someone he knew and trusted.

The fact that it had happened to him wasn't a big deal. He was by no means unconcerned with his own health but he'd rather it happen to himself than someone else on Atlantis. Had it been a completely different patient, Carson would probably be more furious than he was.

The people of Atlantis depended on the medical staff just as much as they depended on the military and the leaders. When something was wrong they had no choice but to trust Carson and his team to tell them what was wrong and how to fix it. If that trust is violated in such an intrusive way, the idea makes his stomach roll and his head ache infinitely more fierce.

The previously soft lighting that had been around his bed suddenly became close to blinding and he had to close his eyes to get away from the brightness.

"Doc, what's wrong?" John asked noticing the change in his friend. Carson had gone from tiredly jovial to pale and drawn. He saw the way the doctor shied away from the light and never moved his hand, which was massaging viciously, from his head.

"Wee bit of a headache, I'll be fine." But the heart monitor slowly kept climbing and John began to think that it was more than a "wee bit of a headache".

He pressed the nurse button on his bed and waited patiently for the person to come. A petite brunette with soft features approached quickly, her manicured eyebrows drawing together in confusion when she noticed that the person whom had pressed the button was fine. "Yes Colonel?"

"I think something's wrong with Beckett," he said with a head nod to his roommate, "he says he has a headache but I think it's worse than that."

The nurse nodded then proceeded over to Carson's side. She took a look at the monitors, read his patient file then took his pulse manually. With a short nod, the nurse left but returned quickly with a syringe in hand.

"Doctor Beckett I'm going to give you a cocktail of sumatriptan and ativan, okay?"

"Aye," Carson replied weakly, his voice coming out at a growl. The pain in his head was increasing and his stomach was tempting to rebel. Thankfully the medication kicked in quickly and he didn't even have time to relax before he fell into a deep sleep.

"What'd you give him?" John asked realizing that while he had heard the names of the medication he didn't know what they were.

"A mixture of a sedative and migraine reducer. The best thing for him right now is to sleep but I get the feeling that if he's here all night he may be tempted to work which will only bring the migraine back," she explained patiently while recording the new results and writing what she'd just given Carson in his chart.

"Doctor Keller tried to give him a sedative earlier," John began, his mind trying to figure out if that was the reason why.

"She did? It's not in his chart."

"That's because he never took it."

The nurse nodded, her regretful honey brown eyes looking down at the sleeping doctor, "Maybe he should have." She turned around and gave John a bright smile, "Get some rest Colonel. We'll be keeping a close eye on him."

John relaxed into the bed, his eyes traveling from the sleeping form of his snoring, very loudly in fact, friend and to the nurse's station where the nurse who had just left was seen to be seemingly reading a book though her eyes rarely left Carson's bed.

His last thought before falling asleep was a happy, comforting one. _Maybe I'm not the only one with a crush._


	5. Part V

**Part V: **

Dr. Elizabeth Weir sat in her office absently chewing on a turkey sandwich as she read an email from the IOA. The salt from the meat reached her tongue and her brain automatically requested a couple sips of water to negate the extra sodium. She drank deeply from the bottle of water then popped a couple of grapes in before she answered.

Her fingers flew over the keyboard with frantic grace as her mind transcribed what it wanted her phalanges to type. She did her best to keep her anger out of the email but it was difficult when the bureaucrats kept questioning her every decision. Sometimes she wished one of them would come and try to run Atlantis for a week, see how easy they found it. Maybe then she'd be willing to take their not so constructive criticism.

"_Doctor Becket to Doctor Weir," _her radio chirped in her ear.

Thankful for a break from reading condescending notes, Elizabeth raised a hand to her earpiece and tapped it. "Go ahead Carson, how are you feeling?"

She'd been worried about her Head of Medicine ever since she watched him pass out in her office. It was foolish, she knew since Jennifer had kept her updated quite frequently but her worrying mind liked to flash back and replay the whole unnerving scene over and over and over.

"_I'm well thank ye," _Carson replied quickly. Clearly he didn't want to chat about his health. _"I wondered if you had some spare time to meet with me tonight around six pm?" _

Elizabeth looked at the clock that hung hidden over the entrance to her office. Figuring that six hours was more than enough time to get through her daily work she tapped her earpiece again, "Sure, will my office work or should I meet you in your office?"

"_Your office will do fine. Did ye need me to bring some dinner?" _

The Expedition Leader smiled. You could always count on Carson to worry about everyone else before worrying about himself. He always hounded her about eating more and making sure to get good sleep even though he himself didn't do either very regularly either.

She was about to answer in the positive when her mothering mind reminded her that he'd injured his wrist when he'd fallen and shouldn't stress it out too much for a few weeks yet. Instead she settled for a compromise. "How about I meet you in the cafeteria? We can walk up to my office afterwards."

"_Sounds great, thank ye. I should go but I'll see ye in six hours." _And with that the doctor signed off.

Her brow furrowed as her forehead wrinkled in confusion. She could have sworn Jennifer had told her that Carson would be off duty for another week. So why did he wish to see her? She knew it had to do with his job, the professionalism in his voice alone told her of that but what could it be that Jennifer was allowing him to work?

Shrugging off her curiosity, Elizabeth returned her attention back to the screen in front of her. She continued to read and reply to emails (No Rodney you cannot order fifteen pounds of coffee for your department alone!) but soon her mind returned back to her questions and before she realized it, her hand activated her com, "Doctor Weir to Colonel Sheppard."

It took a few minutes but soon John's voice answered, _"Go ahead Elizabeth." _

"I was wondering if I could talk with you. Are you busy?" She knew he wasn't busy, or at least he better not be, but she wanted to know if he was trying to rest or eating some lunch or something. The poor man very rarely got to enjoy some free time and she didn't want to intrude on the chance he has.

"_No I'm not busy. Do you want me to meet you in your office?" _

"No," Elizabeth replied immediately. She allowed the unspoken threat of 'you better not come out of your room' to seep into her voice as she spoke the word. _Honestly why could he just sit still for more than five minutes? _"I'll come down to you. I'm assuming you're in your quarters?"

John laughed at her silent 'you better be!'. _"Yeah I'm here. Come on down. Great now I sound like Bob Barker." _

Elizabeth allowed her laugh at his grumbled joke to be her sign off and soon returned her attention back to her computer. With a solution to her curiosity set in motion, she found it much easier to focus on her work. Soon the emails were flying out like they were carried on wings and her daily monotony began to shrink.

* * *

><p>After Carson signed off he headed straight for the cafeteria where a fresh pot of coffee waited enticing those who found themselves drained of energy by the middle of the day. His head still pounded but at the moment the pain was acute so he hoped a little bit of caffeine would serve to not only ease the pain but fuel himself for the daunting work he was about to do.<p>

He poured himself a cup, added some milk and sugar then headed for his quarters where he knew he wouldn't be disturbed to begin his search.

* * *

><p>John had just finished a shower when his door chimed. He checked with Atlantis to see who it was before he mentally willed the doors to open, saving him from having to crutch over and open them himself.<p>

As Elizabeth walked in, somewhat reluctantly, John lowered himself onto the only place that was currently comfortable for his still injured leg, his bed.

"How are you feeling?" she asked as she continued her slow meander into his quarters. She sat down in the chair at his desk but instead of slouching, like her military commander often did, she held herself upright and proper.

"Better," John answered knowing that Jennifer had more than likely already updated Elizabeth on his status. He kept his posture relaxed, for once not having to force it, but his nerves buzzed with curiosity.

She waited for a few heartbeats, hers beating more wildly than normal, before she decided it was time to get right to the point. "Did something happen in the infirmary that I should know about?"

Though the calm expression on John's face never faltered, Elizabeth could tell that his muscles had tensed fractionally at the question which only helped to pique her interest even more.

"What makes you think that?" he asked knowing answering a question with a question was more than enough of an answer for her but he couldn't help it. He didn't want to give away more than was appropriate.

Carson had slept soundly but when he'd woken this morning, John could tell there was a tenseness about him that wasn't normally present. He knew the Scot was planning on looking into the incident that occurred the evening before and decided it was none of his business from then on unless Jennifer needed an escort for some reason.

Elizabeth narrowed her eyes in a way that means he knows very well what she's talking about, "Carson asked to see me. He sounded very professional, like he wants to talk about work. I thought he wasn't supposed to be working for another week?"

"He's not. Heard the doc say so and everything." John averted his eyes briefly and began twiddling his thumbs absently. Elizabeth held her gaze knowing she would break him down and soon he continued. "There may have been an incident with Doctor Keller trying to sedate Beckett with out his permission or without telling him that's what she was doing."

"What?" Elizabeth asked. At first the incident didn't sound that dire but the more her brain ran through it the more she realized that it was serious indeed. While she wasn't a medical professional she knew that not informing a patient of their treatment was a violation of some sort of ethics. "Why did she do that?"

"She thought that he needed to rest, guessed that he wouldn't do it unless he was sedated and tried to do just that," John answered with a shrug. "He didn't take too kindly to it."

"No, I bet he didn't," she conceded with a half smile. Drawing in a deep breath, she got off the chair. "Well, I should go. Someone's got to tell Rodney no." John let out a tired chuckle. She turned around before she exited, "Thanks."

* * *

><p>Carson leaned back in his chair his hand massaging his temples. The computer screen shone brightly in his eyes, the soft light blinding his retinas and making his headache increase drastically. In hindsight reading report after report for hours wasn't a good idea when one's been suffering from migraines for the past couple of days but that was the annoying thing about hindsight, it doesn't do anyone a bit of good after the fact.<p>

His acute headache had grown to a deeply throbbing headache that threatened to blossom into an all out migraine – something he really didn't need happening right now. He inhaled deeply attempting to refresh his stressed mind.

Crystal blue eyes strayed towards the clock in the corner of his computer, checking to see what time it was. Four o'clock; he had two hours before his meeting with Elizabeth and he knew exactly what to do with them.

With a groan he eased his stiff body out of the chair and walked over to his bathroom. He grabbed a face cloth and turned on the cold water and waited tiredly for it to become freezing. God his head hurt. Silently he begged Atlantis to make the temperature as freezing as possible so that it would help soothe the pain in his head.

A warm humming filled his nerves alerting him that Atlantis received his quiet plea and had done as he requested. He felt her soothing concern and smiled in spite of himself.

Rinsing out the excess water from the face cloth then made his way to the bed where he stretched out welcoming the softness of it. He placed the cloth on top of his forehead, letting out a sight of relief as the throbbing began to abate.

He felt exhaustion begin to pull at him like an impatient child. Before he fell asleep, Carson asked Atlantis to wake him up fifteen minutes before six. When he received a calming hum of, _**Of course, **_the doctor allowed himself to drift off into darkness and dreams.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I do apologize for taking so long and for the short chapter. I hope that it was worth the wait. ;) <strong>


	6. Chapter VI

**Part VI:**

"_Doctor Becket this is Doctor Weir, please respond." _

Carson woke with a still pounding head and a racing heart. He groaned when he turned his head to look for the closest clock. His headache was still very present but instead of the intense migraine it had been when he'd gone to sleep, it was only a monster headache that roared within the confines of his skull. Bleary eyes looked at the clock and quickly widened when they saw the time. _I thought you were going to wake me, _he half accused, half asked the city.

_**You needed the rest Doctor. **_

The Scot ignored the concerned note in the city's tone and gingerly reached for his radio. "This is Carson, go ahead Elizabeth."

"_Carson, are you alright? You sound terrible." _The concern in Elizabeth's tone could be heard easily through the com making the medic smile, albeit a bit wanly.

"Aye, I'll be fine. I'm sorry I'm late, I'll meet you in your office in ten minutes." Carson shut off his radio so he could get out of bed without groaning in her ear which would discount his previous claim. He sat on the edge of his bed, head in hands, trying to breath without getting sick.

The chime on his door sounded, surprising him and making him jump. Slowly he stood up and made his way to the door, not surprised to see a worried Elizabeth standing on the other side. It was obvious that seeing him only served to increase her worry so he tried to give her a warm, assuring smile. "Oh hello Elizabeth. I thought I was meeting you in your office?"

Elizabeth walked in, watching her Head of Medicine move about his room with concern, worry lines etched into her normally smooth features. "You didn't sound that well when you answered so I thought I'd come and check up on you," she answered still studying him. He was pale and moving like every step hurt making her glad she came and checked on him; he clearly wasn't feeling well which meant he had no business discussing business.

Resolved about what she needed to do, she stepped forward, placing a hand on the small of his back and leading him to his recently vacated bed. "Should I send someone to see you? You look terrible."

"Colonel Sheppard is right, you have a horrible bedside manner," Carson joked weakly, wincing heavily when the pain in his head ratcheted up a few several thousand levels. Unable to stifle a groan from the pain, he lowered his head into his hands and prayed he didn't start crying.

Elizabeth remained silent, recognizing a killer headache turning migraine in a heartbeat and simply walked into his bathroom easily locating a glass for some water and a washcloth to place on top of his head. On her way back to the bed she grabbed the prescription for Sumatriptan which she knew was the migraine relief then proceeded to hand the glass of water and prescription meds to her friend, placing the cloth at the base of his neck while he took the medicine.

She hesitated only slightly before she sat down on the bed beside him and began gently rubbing small circles on his back trying to soothe the overstressed muscles in his neck the more she went. Though Elizabeth herself had never been a victim of a migraine her mother had so she had a pretty good idea of what would help and what would hurt. She made sure to keep her touch light as a feather over the taught muscles but still maintained the soothing massage.

When Carson let out a sigh of relief she pulled away and stood up, taking the now warm cloth with her to re-cool hoping that he would lie down in her absence. She came back to find him swaying slightly from his sitting position on the bed and quickly went to guide his body down, placing his head onto the pillow and grabbing his legs to stretch them out. Since he'd obviously just woken up from a nap he didn't have any shoes so she didn't have to worry about that as she pulled a blanket over him and placed the newly cold cloth on the top of his forehead, smiling when he let out another breath of relief.

Before she left, Elizabeth used a spare pen and paper to write him a note, letting him know that she will be back in a few hours to check on him and bring him something to eat. She knew that the combination of the migraine and taking the meds on an empty stomach wouldn't be handled too kindly by said stomach once he woke so ti was best to get some food him in before it rebelled.

Elizabeth didn't have the ancient gene but she was more than aware that the city heard you when you spoke; it was a secret that she and most of the senior staff kept VERY quiet since they were sure the rest of the occupants would panic if they knew someone was listening to their very private conversations. Just before closing the door to Carson's room, she instructed, "Let John or Lorne know if he wakes before I come back."

She walked away, heading straight for John's quarters and calling Major Lorne, telling him to meet her there. One way or another Carson would take care of himself; whether it was by choice or his friends making him.

* * *

><p>Three hours later Elizabeth returned to Carson's room, knocking briefly before the doors opened and she found her friend still sleeping peacefully. Deciding she didn't want to wake him, she set the tray of food down onto a clear space on his desk then curled up in his desk chair, her eyes roaming over the papers and files on the wooden table. She reached out and picked up several of the files, reading through them before she got the gist of what they were about. With a sigh she placed the papers back onto the desk and turned her gaze towards the Scot in the bed while her mind wandered, searching for a solution to help ease the strain on her friend.<p>

A heavy sigh from the bed drew her out of her thoughts and to where Carson was slowly waking up. He put a hand to his forehead, intending to give it a good rub only to wince and withdraw when it was his injured hand. Stiffly he eased off the bed then looked around bleary eyed until his focus came to rest on Elizabeth. He jumped in response to the surprise but quickly regained his composure and offered a smile of greeting. "Have you been there all this time?"

Elizabeth smiled, "No. I thought you could use some food so I stopped by." She paused, handing him the tray then watched him eat it before she spoke again, frowning when he merely chose to nibble on the food rather than actually eat. "How are you feeling?"

"Better thank you," Carson answered, putting aside the tray of food and facing his friend, smile on his face and almost reaching his eyes. "I see you've decided to do some light reading." Crimson rose into Elizabeth's cheeks as embarrassment came over her drawing a strained laugh from Carson. "Don't worry lass. That was stuff I planned on showing you at our meeting four hours ago. What do you think?"

"Honestly, I don't know," Elizabeth answered with a sigh while she slouched in the chair. "I see that Jennifer's done this more than once but at the same time the patient doesn't seem to have a problem with it or with her; they willingly allow her to see them and care for them again."

"Aye, I noticed that as well and if I were one-hundred percent honest I would say that she was right, I did eventually need sedation but the question there is did I need it to allow my body rest or did I need it because I'd become over-stressed because of the situation?"

Elizabeth remained silent, her mind puzzling through his questions and trying to find the right way to answer. "Is it possible that both are true? Carson, I know you needed the rest but if you were in the infirmary you wouldn't get it; you'd be tempted to hop out of bed and start working, something your head did not need. If I were Jennifer I probably would have tried to sedate you as well. But the fact that she didn't tell you stressed you out enough to eventually require the medicine anyways." She waited for her friend to work through the truth of her words, silently watching as his eyes began to scrunch and his uninjured hand went to his head. She stood up and sat next to him, placing a hand on his leg and giving it a light squeeze. "Why don't you let me deal with this problem? You're supposed to be on leave for the next week and this," she waved a hand towards his very full desk and still on computer, "is work."

She grabbed the tray of food once again and handed it to him then got up and went to refill the glass of water. "Eat," she instructed as she cleaned up his desk and shut down his computer. Once the desk was cleaned, the files and stray papers in her arms for safekeeping, Elizabeth sat back down in the desk chair patiently waiting for Carson to finish the food. When he'd finished, she took the tray back, placing it on top of the files then said, "Good. Now you will stay here in your quarters and sleep until the morning. No working, no responding to emergency calls, nothing. I'll handle the situation with Jennifer and Jennifer will handle any situations that come to the infirmary. You need to rest, got it?"

"Elizabeth-" Carson began only to be cut off.

"-No Carson. You need rest. Your body is telling you that you need it and your over-tired brain is begging for it. It's time for you to learn to delegate."

Pain lanced through Carson's head, making him wince and once again bring his hand up to it, giving it a comforting massage. He desperately wanted to argue with his boss and friend but he knew that she was right. He had a feeling that if he were to try to do ANY work, his head might just explode. Maybe a few days off would be a good thing. "Aye, alright," he conceded with a heavy sigh. "You should get some sleep as well."

Elizabeth gave a warm laugh. Same old Carson - always worrying about everyone else and not about himself. She waited until he was lying back down on the bed before she walked to the door, letting it open before she wish, "Good night Carson. Get some sleep."

"Sleep well Elizabeth," Carson mumbled as he fell asleep, his breath evening out and deepening before she'd even had time to exit.

When Elizabeth got to her office she tossed the files and paperwork into a vacated but locked drawer in her desk. While she didn't agree with Jennifer not telling her boss that she was giving him a sedative, she did agree with giving him the sedative. She'd spoken briefly with the young doctor and she knew that Jennifer felt horrible over what had happened and wasn't likely to let it happen again; there was no need to take further action.

She walked down to her room, changed then slipped into bed. Before she fell asleep, she made plans to team up with Lorne, Ronon and Rodney. She knew there was NO WAY Carson would stay away from work unless someone physically made him and who better than two military men and an abrasive scientist? With a smile on her face, sleep overcame her while a smile still played on her face.

_~fin~_


End file.
